This princess is nearly a queen...

Halloween - the one day every year that I get up a little bit early to don the perfect princess hairstyle and put on my prettiest dress to match my tiara. 

It's a tradition. 

Tiara wearing of course is not reserved just for Halloween. My birthday is the other day of the year that I pull the tiara out of storage and take on my true form, princess Alicia. 

Over the years I've been many kinds of princesses. Princess in a flowing gown, hippie princess, Sailor Moon...the list goes on. Judge me as you will, but there is something about giving in to the gender stereotypes and living the castle-dwelling dream for one day that makes the whole world feel right. Like I could do anything. 

This year I got dressed in the dark. Typical well-practised bouffant hairstyle, sparkles on the cheeks, a little extra attention to the eye make up, and of course the crinoline under the skirt to really drive it home. It wasn't until just before noon that I had the chance to look at the whole costume in the mirror. 

That's when I noticed something different...

That fresh dewy princess face that typically greets me all day Halloween was replaced by a face that seemed to resemble a princess who was just about past her prime; A spoiled Peach, a Cinderella in Hush Puppies. The face that looked back at me closer resembled...a queen....

Suddenly I was struck by the meagre length of my skirt...was it inappropriate?

I was weighed down by the responsibilities. My mind quickly went to that salad in my lunch bag with the carefully measured feta cheese and closely tracked calorie count...

Am I turning into a "mature adult"?

MY TIME's NOT UP!! I haven't even had the chance to have a MASQUERADE BALL YET!!!! 

Heavy Stuff.

So I went back to my desk and cracked open a couple of candy wrappers. Just enough wrapper jingling and to take my mind off the mirror and put me back in the festive mood; The sweet melting bubbles of the Aero bar somewhat spoiled by the thought of laugh lines taking over my smooth sparkly cheeks...

Mirror, Mirror on the wall - WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED!?!? 

So for all you princesses and queens out there. All my love and lots of chocolate. We can get through this together ;)